Black Lace: Book 4 of the Black Butterfly Series

by Nika Michelle

  I sighed and closed my car door. “I’m leaving. Fuck this shit. Bye.”

  Renell wore a regretful expression as she stared down at me. “Look, Seandra…”

  I cut her off as I started the ignition. “Save it. You can feel whatever you want to feel about me. Just know that your shit stinks too.”

  As I drove off I could read the look on Seantay’s face. It was that caught in the middle look. The one she’d worn most of our lives. Yeah, my sisters and I had been bonding lately, but Renell’s little remark reminded me of why we didn’t get along in the past. She was so judgmental and self-righteous. Fuck her.

  * * *

  When I pulled up to my house I noticed that a red BMW convertible was parked in front. I had no clue who was in the car, but when I passed it to get to my driveway, I spotted Pierre sitting behind the wheel. My heart skipped a beat, but I reminded myself of what Renell had said. I mean, truthfully I was attracted to him, but I would never act on it. I was with Ahmad and despite what he pulled a few days ago, I was still madly in love with him. The way I saw it, Pierre was not an issue at all.

  As I grabbed my purse and stepped out of my car, I spotted Pierre walking toward me. There was a friendly smile on my face as he stopped a few inches in front of me, or was it flirty. I immediately straightened my face in an attempt to not give him any mixed messages.

  “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to impose. Uh, I was just about to leave. I would’ve called first, but I don’t have your number,” he smiled as he wringed his hands together nervously.

  “It’s okay. Uh, to what do I owe this…visit?” I asked as I put my purse’s strap on my shoulder. All I could think was damn his fine ass and that accent.

  “I just wanted to personally thank you and let you see for yourself that I’m okay. I’m taking my meds like I’m supposed to and if you need me to take care of the expenses for your car, I wanted to make sure you knew how to contact me.” He passed me a business card that I didn’t bother to look at.

  “No worries. The insurance company will take care of it. I told you that already.” I laughed nonchalantly before I continued. “I’m sure everything will be covered due to your medical condition.”

  He nodded and then gave me an intense look with those sexy ass eyes. I had to look away.

  “I guess I’ll be on my way then. I’m not going to hold you up. I’m sure that you’re a busy woman, as well as a taken one. I wouldn’t want your beau to get the wrong idea.”

  “You’re not holding me up from anything and Ahmad is aware of what happened, so you stopping by for a friendly thank you wouldn’t alarm him.” That time when I laughed it was a nervous one. I brushed my hair out of my face with my hand as he stared at me with what was obviously longing in his eyes. If he didn’t stop I was sure he was going to start drooling. I cleared my throat.

  “Uh…well, I guess I’ll get going. Thanks again Seandra, and you take care,” he said still lingering there as if he had no intentions of leaving at all.

  “No problem Pierre. You take care of yourself too.”

  He turned on his heels slowly and then headed to his car. The man’s walk was even sexier than that accent of his. His legs were slightly bow and the dark blue jeans that he wore fit his muscular ass perfectly. I let out an exhale as I walked off toward my front door. One thing was for certain, that man was without a doubt alluring as hell.

  Before I could get in the house and close the door my cell phone rang. It was Ahmad, so I quickly answered wondering why I hadn’t heard from him all day. He knew that I had dinner with the family, but that had never stopped him from checking in before.

  “Hey babe,” I said with a smile on my face as I pictured my fine ass, super sexy boyfriend. Shit, my ass was trying hard as hell to erase any attraction that I had for Pierre. It wasn’t working because I was still imagining his ass in those damn jeans.

  “Hey. Who is that I just saw leaving your house?” He asked with an edge of jealousy in his voice.

  I was immediately on guard at that point. “Where are you?” I asked.

  “Pulling up in the driveway…”

  “Well why the hell didn’t you just wait to ask me that when you got inside?” I hung up the phone feeling like my body was on fire.

  What the hell kind of shit was that? He was questioning me and shit like he was accusing me of something. A few minutes later the front door opened and Ahmad stepped inside with a contemplative look on his handsome face. As he stepped closer to me, I prepared myself for a confrontation. Lately he’d become more possessive than usual, so I had a feeling he wasn’t going to take Pierre’s visit that well.

  “So, I haven’t heard from you all day and the first thing you do is ask who is leaving my house?” I broke the awkward silence instantly.

  “And I still want to know,” he snapped with an attitude. “I know it was a man, but he went in the opposite direction and shit, so I couldn’t see him.”

  “So the fuck what if it was a man? Do you really think I’d be up to some shit and you have a key to my house?” I shook my head in disbelief. “Really Ahmad? Have our relationship come to that. Have I given you one reason not to trust me?”

  He stared at me and shook his head. “You’re still avoiding my motherfucking question Seanda.”

  “Don’t start cursing at me! What the fuck is wrong with you?”

  He didn’t say anything, but the look in his eyes said it all. For some reason he thought I was up to something and I didn’t know why. When had our relationship gone left? At first things were all good. There didn’t seem to be an insecure bone in his body. Suddenly he was acting like some pussy whipped asshole who just knew that I would go elsewhere.

  “That was Pierre. I had just pulled up after leaving my parents’ house for dinner and he was here. He told me that he was about to leave, but wanted to give me his contact information for the insurance claim. The insurance company has to get his medical information for the damages to be paid for. It was nothing Ahmad. We stood right outside for less than three damn minutes.” After my explanation I walked off toward my bedroom.

  It had been a hot day in the city of Miami and all I wanted to do was take a shower and relax in front of the television. After the disagreement with Renell, I wasn’t in the mood for another confrontation.

  “Okay babe. I’m sorry,” he said behind me.

  I could hear his footsteps as he caught up with me, grabbed my arm and turned me around to face him.

  “I love you Seandra,” he said with tears glistening in his eyes. “I don’t know why I’m tripping. I just…well, I’m so in love with you.”

  “I love you too baby,” I confirmed as I looked into his eyes to let him know that I was sincere.

  “When I look at you I see a woman who is every man’s desire. You’re gorgeous and talented. Not only that, but you keep me on my toes. I love how strong minded you are. Shit. You’re the only woman I know who tells it like it is. You don’t let me get away with shit and I love that about you. I have never been an insecure man Seandra, but you bring out something in me that no other woman ever has. I’m actually afraid that I might lose you. It’s like you were attainable, but how do I keep you.” He caressed my cheek as his eye contact with me remained.

  “Just keep making me happy Ahmad. I’m not going anywhere okay. Don’t let your insecurities push me away. I love you so much and I’ve wanted you for so long. I won’t risk what we have. Shit, we’ve been through enough to keep us together for a lifetime. Please trust me.” I pleaded with my man to not give me a reason to prove him right.

  He grabbed my hand and held it tightly before planting a sweet kiss on my lips. “You’re right. I should trust you. I mean, I do trust you.”

  “Good. Now I’m going to take a shower. Care to join me?” I winked at him before flashing him a sexy, alluring look.

  “Hell yeah,” he said as he grabbed my ass cheeks and squeezed.

  I had to pacify Ahmad although I wasn’t really in the mood f
or sex. His suspicions alone were a turn off, but I did love him enough to do whatever I had to do. Knowing that my physical attraction to Pierre was just a phase that would pass made me think of the long term. The love I had for my man was enough. Besides, I had gone to my doctor to get some birth control pills the day before. It was better to be safe than sorry.

  Chapter 10

  Renell

  My disagreement with Seandra had me on edge when I got home. I wanted to tell Ricky all about it, but he wasn’t there. When I called to check up on him the phone went straight to voicemail. It was a Saturday, so I knew that he didn’t have to work. Claudette, my nanny, walked up to me as soon as I entered the foyer.

  “Hello Miss Beauvois. Sean is asleep, but I’m sure he’ll be up in a little bit,” she said flashing a dimpled smile as she tossed her jet black hair over her shoulder.

  Claudette was a middle aged Scandinavian woman who had come highly recommended by the Agency she worked for. I’d done an extensive back ground and mental check on her. I had to be very careful about who I let around my child. That was something Ricky and I were both very adamant about. It wasn’t easy to entrust someone who wasn’t family, so it was very important to take all of the proper measures.

  “Thanks so much Claudette,” I said quickly passing her to check on my son.

  Once I was standing over his crib staring down at him, I instantly felt better. The situations with Grady and then Brock had me on stress overload. I had to shake my head at the fact that my sister didn’t seem to be at all concerned about what I’d just been through when she snapped on me. Of course I’d gone into detail about what had happened with Grady at dinner, but I would think after that Seandra would have some kind of concern for me. Shit, I was feeling way more sensitive and anxious than normal. Maybe I was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

  I left my sleeping son’s room wondering why Ricky’s phone was going straight to voicemail. Not that I had any reason not to trust him, I was just hoping that nothing was wrong. It was a Saturday evening and maybe he needed a little wind down time. I could understand if he needed to meet up with the boys and relax. At least I hoped it was that. It just wasn’t like Ricky not to be available for me.

  When I opened the door to the master suite I noticed that his laptop was open and sitting on the bed like he’d just left. The screen saver was a picture of me and Resean. I walked over to see if I could find a clue about where he was. I slid my finger across the mouse to wake the computer up, but noticed that it had a password. Why the hell would he do that? When I thought about it, I’d never really used his computer. Maybe there had been a password on it all along, but what did he have to hide? It wasn’t like anyone other than me had access to his lap top.

  That shit was fishy as hell. On a Saturday evening my fiancé wasn’t home, his phone was going straight to voicemail and there was a password on his computer. What the hell was going on? I didn’t want to read anything into it, but something was telling me that something just wasn’t right.

  I picked up my cell and dialed Ricky’s number again. I’d noticed during our relationship that there were often times when he wasn’t accounted for, but they were far and few between. He’d always have a logical explanation and I wouldn’t really question him otherwise. I had no reason to believe that he would be stepping out on me, but I also didn’t put anything past a man.

  Once again, the call went straight to voicemail.

  “Ricky, baby, where are you? I need you to call me back asap.”

  I hung up and sighed as I escaped to the master bedroom to take a calming bubble bath. After turning on the water, I adjusted it to the perfect temperature and then added my favorite lavender fragranced bath salts. The calming aroma seemed to instantly relieve some of my anxiety. As I exhaled, I walked out of the room to let Claudette know that I was about to take a bath.

  She was walking out of the nursery when I stepped out into the hallway.

  “I’m going to take a bath, but you’re free to go after that,” I said with a smile.

  “Are you sure Miss Beauvois? You look really tired. Maybe you should take a nap. I’ll stay until you wake up.” She had a hint of an accent, but it wasn’t that strong. She’d been in the US since she was a teenager.

  The mention of a nap did sound pretty good. “Uh, did you see Ricky leave? Did he say where he was going?”

  “He ran out of here like a bat out of hell,” she said like she’d just remembered. “No, he didn’t say anything.”

  “How long ago was that?” My heart suddenly fell.

  “Uh, it was right after you left. He played with Resean for a little while and then went into the bedroom. He was in there for a few minutes and then ran out with the phone glued to his ear,” she explained. “I figured it was an emergency or something. Have you spoken to him?”

  “No, that’s why I was asking.” I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. “Okay. Well, I’m sure he’s fine. Thanks Claudette.”

  I walked off with that sinking feeling that my man was up to no good. There wasn’t really any concrete evidence. At that point everything was circumstantial, but why would he rush out of the house on the phone. He damn sure hadn’t called me. Why wouldn’t my fiancé call me if there had been an emergency?

  As I made my way back to the bathroom, I ducked in to check on my sleeping son again. He was the most important person in my life and I really wanted to give him the world. I wanted his father to be a part of that world, but if he was doing some foul shit I wouldn’t hesitate to let him go. The thing was, I had to find out what he was up to before we got married.

  So, I decided to let Claudette stay a little bit longer, but I wasn’t planning to take a nap. Nope. My plan was to crack the password on Ricky’s computer and do some snooping. There had to be something on it that he didn’t want me to see and I was determined as hell to find out what it was.

  * * *

  About an hour had passed and I was still wrecking my brain trying to figure out what that damn password was. Just when I decided to give up Ricky came strolling into our bedroom like it was nothing. It was a good thing I’d closed his laptop and placed it on top of the nightstand on his side of the bed. He had no idea I’d been snooping. Instead of mentioning the computer, I decided to stay quiet about it. If I alarmed him, he wouldn’t be willing to leave it around for me to go at it again.

  “Hey baby,” he said with a huge grin on his face. “Claudette told me that you were resting. I thought I was going to come in here and sneak in bed with you.”

  I managed to smile up at him and hide my suspicions. “Yeah, I just woke up. I tried to call you earlier, but your phone went straight to the voicemail.”

  He sat down on the bed and leaned over to kiss my forehead. “Carl called and challenged me to some pool, so I went over there for a little while. I didn’t realize that I didn’t have my car charger. Remember I let you borrow it?” He narrowed his eyes at me.

  “Yeah, that’s right. I’m sorry babe.” I did have his car charger, but that still was no excuse for him not calling me before his phone died. “That still doesn’t explain why you didn’t call me.”

  “I was on the phone for hours with mom dukes and shit. She’s all excited about the wedding and well…you know how that goes. I didn’t realize how low my battery was until I pulled up in Carl’s driveway. I was going to just let it charge in the car, but of course the charger wasn’t there. Carl has an iPhone, so his charger doesn’t work with my phone. I figured you were busy with your folks, so I didn’t think you’d miss my call anyway.”

  There was something in his voice that made him sound nervous. I could also detect a subtle hint of dishonesty in his tone. Why I felt that? I didn’t know, but I felt it. Damn, to think that the man I was about to marry was deceiving me was killing me inside. Still, I pretended to not notice. Not because I was stupid, or naïve, but because I didn’t want him to suspect that I was on to his deception.

  “Yeah, you’re
right. Dinner with the folks fulfilled my entire day to the point where a call from my fiancé, and the father of my son, was not necessary at all,” I said sarcastically.

  Ricky gave me a look and suddenly there was a defensive expression on his face. I had a feeling that we were headed for an argument and I didn’t have time for that. My son was on my mind. Initially I had planned to take him with me to my parents’, but he had a little cold and I didn’t want to take him out. I promised my folks that as soon as his congestion went away I’d bring him over.

  “So, you’re mad because I didn’t call you?” He asked as he stood up and paced the floor.

  “No, I’m not mad. It’s just been a crazy week. That’s all.” I decided not to even mention the words I’d had with Seandra. “I’m going to check on Resean.”

  He didn’t say anything, so I left the room and headed for the nursery. Claudette was sitting in the white, wooden rocking chair with the baby blue cushion humming a lullaby to Resean while she bottle fed him. He was clutching her finger with his little hand and I felt a twinge of jealousy. Those moments were important for a mother to bond with her child. There I was letting my nanny do it while I spied on my husband. I had to get my priorities straight.

  “Claudette,” I said softly. After the jealousy passed, I realized that it was actually a tender moment. My son knew who his mother was, but had taken a liking to Claudette. That was fine with me being that she would be aiding in taking care of him.

  She turned to look at me. “Yes, Miss Beauvois.”

  “Uh, I’d like to finish giving him his bottle. Thank you so much. You’re so good with him and well…I’ve used enough of your time today. You’re free to go.”

  Claudette was just a part time nanny, so she didn’t reside in the house. I didn’t feel the need to have someone there twenty four seven since Rick and I intended on raising our son ourselves. The reason we’d chosen to hire a part time nanny was because we didn’t want inexperienced baby sitters keeping him, I didn’t trust daycares when my child couldn’t talk and I already knew that our parents wouldn’t be available to help as much as we needed. As for my sisters, they didn’t know shit about babies.